Hair waving method



Patented May 28, 1935 i PATIENT. OFF! HAIR WAVING METHOD Paul R. Steinbach, Inkewood,

Ohio, 01-10 m The Realistic Permanent Wave Machine Commy, Cincinnati; Ohio,

a corporation of Ohio No Drawing. Application June 9, 1932 Serial No. 616,359

4 claims. (01. 132-36) This invention relates and is particularly applicable to hair upon the human head in giving waves and the like.

Hair is a complex organic substance consisting largely of keratin, itself a complex material; This material either contains or may be readily hydrolyzed into a'substance known as cystine or cystenic acid, probably to the extent of 20%. The hair also apparently contains rather loosely bound sulphur to the amount of about 5%.

In order to impart a lasting or permanent wave to the hair, is necessary not merely to arrange the hair in some curved form into which it is rmanently set it, but to modify the chemical composition so that the natural resiliency of the hair is either destroyed or suspended, in whole or in part, and the hair allowed to as sume a permanent set in the form in which it is held.

This has heretofore generally been accomplished by the use of alkaline solutions applied to the hair, which is then subjected to heat, the

hair treated with any of the above alkalies is a wave or curl is imparted to it, but the texture of the hair itself becomes impaired, it becoming to a considerable extent deadened and dried out, and losing much of its natural resiliency and sheen. v

Apparently the alkalies previously used extracted a considerable quantity of the cystenic acid from the hair and thus caused the change in its appearance and texture.

If the hair be subjected to any strongly alkaline material, the hair is dissolved either in whole or in part. If an alkaline material could be handled with just suflicient dilution to prevent destruction of the hair, it would produce a satisfactory wave. However, if such a material is diluted more than just sufficient, no wave is produced, and in practice it is found that the limits of dilution are within so fine a range as to render this treatment practically impossible.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved method of and means for imparting a wave to the hair which will obviate the difliculties previously experienced.

Other objects will hereinafter appear.

I have found that mixtures of salts, some of which may be too strongly alkaline with others which alone are too weak in their action, can be used effectively.

to the treatment of hair, I

lasting or permanent satisfactorily.

The molecular PotassiumAmmonium=Potasslum+Ammonium Sulphite Carbonate Carbonate Sulphite The above reaction, of course, illustrates the two components as being in equilibrium. 15

With the proportions previously stated, namely- 70% and it will be seen that potassium sulphite is in excess of that used in the reaction 4 put into water, this mixture is really the equivalent of the following:

20 Per cent Potassium sulphite 20.5 Potassium carbonate 43.3 Ammonium sulphite 36.2

When this mixture is dissolved in water, the fol- 25 lowing characteristics of the materials will be noted:

acid is a relatively strong acid.

2. Potassium sulphite decomposes with heat giving potassium sulphate and potassium sulphide.

3. Potassium sulphite combines with sulphur to form potassium thiosulphate.

4. Potassium carbonate hydrolyzes in water giving potassium hydroxide and carbonic acid. 40 5. Ammonium sulphite decomposes with both water and heat yielding free ammonia and sulphur dioxide.

Apparently, when a solution such as above described is used, the following happens:

The presence of the relatively strong sulphurous acid decreases the eflective alkalinity which would otherwise be imparted the solution by the potassium hydroxide and ammonium to a point where the solution is substantially neutral. Hence the reaction of the alkali upon the cystenic acid is reduced well within safe bounds.

The free ammonia may react with the cystenic acid to produce an ammonium soap of cystenic the sulphur of the hair to form a thiosulphate,

this reaction being quite different in its type than that of a base and acid reacting to form a salt. This reaction with the sulphur is very mild in its nature and so does not destroy the hair, but

m aterially assists in imparting a wave to it. The

resultant thiosulphate is easily soluble .in water, and'is readily removed. Moreover, the removal of the sulphur in this manner appears to ,give much better results thancould be obtained by extracting an equivalent quantity of cystenic acid.

The presence of small amounts of potassium sulphide in the water softens the hair, suspending for the'time its natural resiliency.

Besides this, odors of the ammonia and sulphur dioxide tend to neutralize each other.

While the exact reactions have not been deflnitely ascertained, it appears that they are at least similar to those above described, and it has been found by experiment that with the materials -in the, proportions stated, optimum results are obtained. It is believed that this indicates that with the materials described and under the conditions present sulphurous acid to perform two functions, (1) that of controlling the alkaline action of the potassium and ammonium, and (2) that of gently extracting the sulphur.

In practice, a mixture ismade of crystalline potassium sulphite and ammonium carbonate, these materials being much more conveniently handled, packed, shipped, and'stored in the dry form than as solutions. To this, it is only necesduring waving, there is sufficient sary to add water when the material is to be used. Conveniently, s'uflicient material for one head of hair only is packed in a bottle or vial, so that the solutions for each patron is fresh and sanitary.

While I have described my invention in some particularity, many other embodiments will readily occur to those skilled in this art, and I do not, therefore, limit myself to the precise details described, but claim as my invention all embodiments, variations and modifications coming within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of waving hair which comprises moistening the hair with a solution containing a material capable of removing a small amount of cystenic acid and a material capable of removing substantially all of the free sulphur in the hair, and heating the moistened hair.

2. The method of waving hair which comprises treating the hair with heat in the presence of a solution containing a salt of sulphurous acid and a salt of a weaker acid, the salts being in such proportions that the solution is substantially neutral.

' 3. The method of waving hair which comprises subjecting the hair to heat in the presence of a material capable of forming with the sulphur of the hair a thiosulphate.

4. The method of waving hair which comprises subjecting the hair to heat in the presence of a substantially neutral mixture including a radical capable of direct combination with sulphur.

PAUL R. STEINBACH. 

